More

Man Wanted For Trying To Abduct 12-Year-Old Girl

Sketch of a man who tried to abduct a 12-year-old girl in Maine Township. (Credit: Cook County Sheriff)

MAINE TOWNSHIP (CBS) — The Cook County Sheriff is asking for help in finding a man who tried to abduct a 12-year-old girl yesterday in Maine Township.

The sheriff’s office says the man grabbed the 12-year-old girl and tried to drag her into a wooded area as she walked a well-worn path, which is a shortcut to the park outside an apartment complex in unincorporated Des Plaines.

CBS 2’s Mike Puccinelli reports, when the man grabbed her, she fought back, kicking and screaming. When he tried to cover her mouth, she bit his finger as hard as she could, then fled.

Her mother, who we’ll call Barbara to protect her identity, was the first to learn of the abduction attempt.

“She was yelling, ‘Mom, mom, mom! I got attacked by a guy. Open the door quickly,'” she said.

When she saw her daughter’s blood-streaked, swollen face, the seriousness of the attack hit her.

“I was very shocked, actually. I was kind of paralyzed,” she said.

There was a search of an area south of the 9600 block of Golf Road – with a helicopter and dogs.

The sheriff’s office said the man’s white headphones were found, but so far they have failed to come up with a suspect.

The man was last seen wearing an orange and brown hooded sweatshirt and black and white pants.

Anybody with information on the man is being asked to get in touch with the Cook County Sheriff’s office.

Until the man is caught, the victim’s mom said she won’t be taking any chances.

“I will be more controlling [when] it comes to what she’s doing. I really mean it,” she said.

The victim’s friends said they’ve taken the same shortcut alone at times, but they won’t do it ever again after she was attacked.